Las Vegas: Two days later

Las Vegas was so upsetting to me, I had to take the day off yesterday. I wrote no new post: I allowed my post from Monday to stand, because it still characterized my feelings.

What were those feelings? Same as yours, I would imagine. Shock. Outrage and anger at, yes, the psychopath Paddock, but also towards his enablers: the Republican Party and all of its schemers, and the National Rifle Association, the most evil, reprobate organization in America.

I will admit upfront that I am not a lover of guns. I’ve fired a few weapons in my long lifetime, always under the supervision of a trainer. But I found no thrill in it. I do not understand people who are fascinated with guns. I can understand hunting; although I’ve never done it, I allow a place for legitimate hunters (and I exclude from that category rich, spoiled assholes like Trump’s sons, who spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on luxurious African vacations where they slaughter innocent animals just for the hell of it).

I allow a place for people with a legitimate need to protect themselves from criminals. We have a Second Amendment that allows citizens to own guns. Fine. No problem.

But this Paddock had, what? Nearly 50 guns. Who in God’s name needs 50 guns? What country on God’s earth rationally allows someone to have 50 guns? I have watched this fight over gun control my entire life, from the time of JFK’s assassination and Reagan’s shooting through Columbine and Sandy Hook to the Orlando “Pulse” shootings and now, this awful disgusting Las Vegas Massacre, and every time something like this happens, and someone dares to mention even the mildest form of gun control, we get some paid hack telling the most evil lie of them all: “Now is not the time to talk about gun control.” The current hack, pimping for the National Rifle Association’s pro-murder policy, is Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who had the nerve, the effrontery, the lack of respect for the dead and wounded of Las Vegas, to stand in front of the cameras and tell the American people—

Well, I was going to quote her exact words, but since everything she said was a lie, let me paraphrase what she meant: “We—President Trump, the N.R.A., and the white supremacist Christian conservatives who support the President–don’t give a f**k about the dead and wounded of Las Vegas. It’s true the President has to pretend he cares, but remember, he’s a T.V. celebrity who has spent the last thirty years acting. He actually studied videos that the White House Communications Office showed him on how past Presidents, including Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan, behaved publicly after similar tragedies, and we had several acting coaches help the President perfect the body language of sadness that’s required of him when he visits Las Vegas. But privately, the President can’t wait to get back to Bedminster, play some golf and relax. Of course, he feels bad about the shootings, but since they don’t really affect him politically, his attitude is: The families will get over it. I’ll send them all nice autographed cards. Besides, even if the President were moved in favor of some increased kinds of gun control—which he isn’t, because fundamentally he doesn’t give a damn—he never would support it, because he owes the National Rifle Association and Wayne LaPierre bigtime for endorsing him. So he’ll never do anything against Mr. LaPierre’s wishes, even if that means many more innocent Americans will have to be slaughtered. And, yes, he’s aware of the fact that it does mean more Americans will die: there will be more Las Vegases, worse Las Vegases, the body count will pile up, the streets will be awash in blood, the wailing of the victims’ families will rise to High Heaven, but Donald J. Trump doesn’t care, because they’re not his family, they’re just unwashed idiots with no money he wouldn’t be caught dead with at Mar-a-Lago. He doesn’t care about any family besides his own, and Mr. LaPierre doesn’t care, because he makes millions of dollars a year leading his phony Second Amendment shtick in favor of legalized mass murder. Next question, please.”

That’s what Sarah Huckabee, the arch-propagandist and shill, was really saying when her lips moved.

You know, the Republicans used to say (and some still do), “Lock her up!” about Hillary Clinton, not because Hillary did anything wrong (she didn’t), but because they’re mentally unbalanced white supremacists who hate and fear strong women. Well, it’s time real Americans start saying “Lock them up!” for the likes of Donald J. Trump, Wayne LaPierre and Sarah Huckabee Sanders. If you’re not as upset as I am right now, look in the mirror and ask yourself why not. If you are, then redouble your efforts! Join The Resistance! Organize for the 2018 election cycle! Do not, repeat, do not tire or flag or grow weary. Do not give in to pessimism or let your grief rob your strength. The stakes are too high. This may be our last chance to save America from this dangerous, evil, morally corrupt cabal.

Until this continuing mess is cleaned up, it is ALways the time to talk about gun control. It may not be about controlling the guns themselves but more about controlling the fingers on the triggers. The lack of caring about people is being demonstrated constantly by the legislation and the departmental curtailment currently going on.